The BIRTH of VENUS is an architectonical statement: a birth is taking place in the coast, the Sea has offered a miracle; she appears standing, she is being introduced to the World. But a single element appears somehow abstract: the shell. The organic form becomes the main place in the act; it is an altar, a hand. Pure piece of architecture, the shell becomes a space. I believe architecture has to recover the sense of foundation. The shell is not only bringing her to the World: it has modified the sense of the painting. It is detached from all the characters and elements of the picture. Like any architectonical space, it certainly defines its condition of medium. And it is even as legal as any ordinary piece of architecture… because it cannot exist without Venus. The shell becomes a symbol of logical geometry: in other words, it suggests the idea of civilisation. Picture: "The Birth of Venus" (frag), by Sandro Boticelli (circa 1480), courtesy: Galeria Ufizzi, Florencia.